Since the Reform and Opening up, GDP of the cities on eastern bank of the Pearl River Estuary in Guangdong Province were higher than the eastern bank cities. Therefore, this article aims to modify the urban gravity model combines it with the entropy weight method to calculate urban quality and applies it to measure the degree of connectivity between cities over the past decades. The research aims to explore whether cities with higher economic output have a greater attraction for surrounding cities, and whether the eastern bank cities can also promote the development of the west. Through detailed data collection and analysis, this essay reveals the dynamic changes of the gravity among cities and its influence factors such as economic, transportation and urban development. The research results indicate that the strongest gravitational force between cities on the east and west banks is between Dongguan and Zhongshan, rather than between Shenzhen and cities on the west bank. This demonstrates that the connection between cities on the east and west banks is primarily constrained by geographical factors, and the geographical location of a city influences on surrounding cities significantly. In particular, Dongguan and Zhongshan play a key role in connecting the eastern and western bank of the Pearl River Estuary, rather than Shenzhen, which is traditionally considered to have the highest economic aggregate. In addition, the study also found that the COVID-19 epidemic has had a significant impact on inter-city communication, resulting in a decline in inter-city gravity in recent years.

This study applies the multiple streams theory. It will further analyze the internal factors of the confluence of multiple sources, in order to explain why the “Joint Recruitment of Four Universities in Macao” policy has become the agenda of the Macao government. The entrance examination requirements from Macau universities are various. They increase local students’ pressure and consume their energy, thus serving as the source of the Problem Stream. The Policy Stream is represented by the Macau government’s intention to reduce students’ educational burden through establishing a unified assessment system. The Political Stream includes the Macau government’s commitment to improving the Macau education system, such as strengthening the multi-assessment system and the “The Fundamental Law of Non-tertiary Education System”. The convergence of these three sources has opened a policy window for the “Joint Recruitment of Four Universities in Macao” system, leading to a new student evaluation system. This policy not only addresses Macau’s social challenges and improves education governance while also highlighting the city’s educational diversity endeavors. Additionally, the strategies for implementing the “Four-University Joint Examination” policy include reducing the number of exams for students, implementing multi-education and multi-enrollment in higher education institutions, analyzing and improving the examination system based on educational big data, and understanding the basic elements and integration paths of big data in higher education. The Macau government can adjust major settings and enrollment quota allocation in the future, draw in more students from the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries and the “Belt and Road” regions, and integrate the joint admission method into the Greater Bay Area education cooperation in order to meet the needs of the growing Macao education industry.

The emerging growth digital application has driven ecosystems integrating digital banks and e-commerce platforms, enabling seamless, efficient transactions. This study examines the impact of user experience and satisfaction on reuse intention in this integrated environment. Using a mixed-method approach, data were collected through surveys of 471 respondents and interviews with 30 participants. Quantitative data were analyzed using structural equation modeling, while qualitative data were processed through content analysis. Results show that perceived ease of use, usefulness, reliability, value, and risk significantly affect user experience, while perceived security does not. These findings aim to help digital banks and e-commerce platforms design effective CRM strategies to enhance satisfaction and reuse intention.

This paper aims to explore the issue of human actions in Islamic thought, focusing on the various stances regarding determinism, free will, and the intermediate position between them. This topic is linked to an ontological question: What are the limits of human responsibility for their actions? Our view is that the different positions on human actions reflect the presence of pluralism within Islamic thought, specifically through the discipline of Islamic theology (kalām). The difference in positions about the human actions within the science of theology expresses the vitality of Islamic thought and its appreciation of the right to differ between theological schools such as the Mu’tazila, Shi’a, and Sunnis, especially in an era dominated by the rationalism of Mu’tazila thought influenced by the methodology of Greek philosophical thought. This difference was recognized, especially in the third and fourth centuries AH/ninth and tenth centuries AD. We consider this difference in discussing the subject of the human actions as evidence of the principle of pluralism in Islam, which allows us to speak of the existence of a significant degree of intellectual tolerance, a subject that has not been studied to date. The prevailing view in studies today on this subject is that the theological groups accuse each other of unbelief, which is a mistaken position, because the saying of unbelief did not appear until after the fourth century AH/tenth century AD when transmission, reliability, and conservatism prevailed in Islamic thought. In addressing this issue, we examine three major stances on human actions as represented by three theological schools: The Mu’tazila (who advocated free will in human actions), the Jabriya (who advocated determinism in human actions), and the Ash’ariyya (who upheld the theory of acquisition). Once this is accomplished, we will explore the philosophy of pluralism in Islam through the lens of kalām. The most important conclusion we reached is that the debate on human actions opened, by the mid-4th century AH/10th century CE, an intellectual horizon that laid the foundations for pluralism in Islamic theological discussions. However, this horizon was soon closed due to various factors, which we have discussed throughout the paper.

The study’s goal is to evaluate how microfinance initiatives affect women’s empowerment in Bangladesh. For this study, we analyzed data on a variety of women’s empowerment-related issues, including both beneficial and detrimental elements that stand in the way of women’s empowerment. Therefore, in order to accomplish the specified goal, we choose a suitable and intentional methodology. We employ diverse data gathering approaches to examine the gathered data and achieve the primary goal of the research project. It presents the positive effects of microfinance on women, such as (1) the enhancement of women’s authority in financial affairs; and (2) the augmentation of their ability to make decisions in household; and (3) community matters following their participation in the microfinance program. This also provides an analysis of the data pertaining to the adverse effects of microfinance on women. It examines how women encounter various challenges and engage in unethical behaviors after obtaining a loan, leading to heightened levels of stress following their participation in the microfinance program. This study looks into the advantages and disadvantages of Grameen Bank’s microcredit program for women. A questionnaire gathered primary data for this study from women participating in the microfinance program in Gopalgonj. To collect information and comprehend respondent behavior, I used case study, analytical and descriptive study design. Regression analysis, correlation, and percentage are used to examine the data. The findings indicate that women’s decision-making skills have improved due to their financial stability, but they have also experienced increased life challenges and high levels of stress.

This study aims to explore the precise characteristics of the issue of bequests, not solely from a jurisprudential perspective as is common among researchers, but also by linking it to its role in community development and progress. Bequests serve multiple functions that represent the ethical and cultural objectives of Sharīʿah [the ‘Divine Legislation’], which manifest in the process of uniting members of a single society. This is achieved through their contribution to building bonds of affection and compassion among individuals. Additionally, bequests have economic dimensions that consider the interests of the needy and provide them with resources to elevate their living standards. The study also presents a comparison between the contract of bequest an inheritance contract in Islamic Sharīʿah and secular laws, particularly Western ones. This is done by examining the mechanisms employed in enforcing bequests and understanding the interests sought in each, highlighting the distinct features of Islamic Sharīʿah in its consideration of kinship and both private and public interests, aiming to clear religious liability and via promoting community development while prioritizing moral and societal values. Accordingly, this study, in its examination of the subject, seeks to investigate the essence and objectives of bequests and extract the meanings endorsed by the majority of scholars who permitted bequests to heirs, conditional upon the consent of the remaining heirs. This approach considers both the significance of maintaining harmonious familial ties, and the positive impact this has on individual and community development. This will then be compared to some methods that strictly define inheritance in certain Western societies. The researcher employed both analytical and comparative methodologies, in line with the study’s requirements, noting that the nature of the research opens horizons for understanding the approaches of non-Islamic countries regarding the issue of wills, the importance of exploring the culture of the other and its foundational references, the impact of Islamic laws on others, and how the laws upon which Islamic legislations were established have benefited from Western legal obligations. This represents an extension that goes beyond legislative codification to a cultural exchange that allows us to build intellectual communication with the other, placing this research before a fundamental problem embodied in the following question: To what extent do bequests contribute to community development? And what are the communicative dimensions that comparative legislation on bequests with the other offers us?

Since the external environment on a global level is very unstable, recovering from various unexpected shocks becomes a challenging question for all countries. Thus, for each country it is necessary to understand its weaknesses and threats. Further, the preparation for any level of uncertainty in various fields must be imperative. Even for the most unpredictable shocks such as pandemic, cyberthreat, or even war. The aim of the article is to evaluate the state resilience of the Baltic States by creating the national resilience index. A state’s resilience is based on four pillars: economic, social, good governance, and defence. The methodology is based the SAW method, data has been collected from NATO and Eurostat databases. As the result of the study, resilience index has been estimated for each year from 2015 to 2022. Results revealed vulnerability and problematic areas of each country.

This study examines the adoption and usability of lifestyle (LS) apps, considering demographic factors like age and education that influence adoption decisions. The study employed a mixed-methods design, combining an experiment (spanning 14 weeks of app use) with semi-structured interviews and periodic measurements. The researchers employed the Mobile Application Usability Questionnaire (MAUQ) to identify pivotal aspects of standalone app usability, interface satisfaction, and usefulness at various stages of use, with a particular emphasis on the experiences of Hungarian students (n = 36). The results demonstrate that health-related factors have a significant impact on students’ behavior and evaluation of lifestyle apps over the 14-week period. Overall, the analyzed LS apps demonstrated positive outcomes in terms of supporting subject health and significantly improving the perceived health state. The findings highlight both practical and theoretical contributions to the field of mobile health applications, suggesting avenues for further research to either confirm or challenge existing theories.